El sistema kárstico de la Sierra de las Nieves (Málaga, España). Un ejemplo de un karst mediterráneo de relieve alto

Abstract

The aim of this work is the stochastic simulation of a network of karst conduits in a high relief karst system. The simulation completes the existing cave mapping provided by speleological exploration and connects the recharge area with the discharge at the karst springs. The Sierra de las Nieves karst system is a high relief Mediterranean karst that has allowed the development of a system of large conduits and caves. The system follows the typical pattern of an alpine karst system with two characteristic zones where the development of the caves is different. The first zone, with a mean altitude of 1750 m a.s.l., the Hoyas del Pilar and Torrecilla, is the area with highest altitude where recharge takes place and where the entrance potholes to the system are located. In this zone the cave system has a development mainly along the vertical (with 1,000 m of vertical development along a few hundreds of metres of horizontal development) with large shafts and narrow and steep meanders, until the local base level is reached at 700 m a.s.l. In the second zone, the system has a quasi-horizontal development with 300 m of altitude difference for 7 km in the horizontal until the base level of the system at the Río Grande Spring (450 m a.s.l.). The transition between both zones is dominated by the presence of sumps where the conduits have vertical ondulations. The connectivity between the entrance and the resurgence has been demonstrated, in the past, by tracer tests. The system of super caves has been made possible because of the favourable conjunction of lithological, structural, geomorphological, hydrogeological and climatic factors. Geomorphic indices are introduced to describe the three-dimensional karst networks so the known network can be completed (i.e. simulated), taking into account statistical and probabilistic criteria. The simulated system can be used for the mathematical flow simulation of the karst system.